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Tax filing in 2014: 7 new rules and 9 wacky deductions

Tax filing season is here, so it's time to ensure you're ready to get the most out of your filing. Read on for new rules for 2014, plus several surprising deductions.

15. Deduction: wigs (but not hair transplants)

Jaime R. Carrero / AP / File
In this Dec. 15, 2008 photo, C.C. Foster, owner of Queen Divas beauty salon in Tyler, Texas, works on a wig for a cancer patient. Wigs can be included in deductions if they are purchased to improve the mental health of patients whose hair loss has been traced medically to a disease.

Don’t like that widening bald spot? The good news is it may lead to a tax deduction. The IRS allows patients with hair loss traced traced to a disease to write off the cost of a wig, if a doctor recommends buying one.

The bad news: Deductions for hair transplants are a lot harder to get. Regardless of the reason for the hair loss – age, illness. etc. – the IRS categorizes hair transplants as cosmetic surgery, which is usually nondeductible. Taxpayers can only write off cosmetic surgery if it is directly related to certain circumstances, such as injuries. 

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